Signal



L. G. BELL ET AL Apr. 1 7,

SIGNAL Filed Dec. 27 1921 l I I I Les/i6 6. eff

P A T LESLIE G. BELL AND MORRIS GRIMM, F MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA.

I vsrenar.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, LESLIE Gr. BELL and Monms GRIMM, both subjects of the King of Great Britain, and bothresidents of the city ofMontreal, in the Province of Quebec and Dominionof Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signals, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description. W This invention relates to improvements in -'direction indicators or signals for automobiles and the like, and the primary object of the invention is to provide a signal which 0 crates in the same manner both day and w night.

. A. further object is to provide a visual direction signal of simple and inexpensive construction which will be durable and efficient in operation and of moderate cost.

.- According to the present invention, a signal device is provided which operates in exactly the same manner day or night and has substantially equal visibility at either time. The invention resides partcularly in provid- 2 ing a casing adapted to contain a source of,

light and having a translucent front which in vdaylight is normally plain white. Behind the translucent front is located an opaque sheet having an opening of desired shape therein, through which light may pass to both shine through and illuminate a portion of the translucent white front. Means hereinafter described in detail are provided for ensuring visibility of the signal in day- In the drawings which illustrate one embodiment of the invention in its most simple form Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a signal as it will appear when in operation.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale of the front of the device.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 11 designates a casing of any suitable form or shape adapted to contain a source of light 12, for example the electric incandescent bulb illustrated. The casing is provided with a front panel 13. This front panel may be constructed in a variety of ways but the arrangement shown in Figure 2 is at the present time found most satisfactory. The form of panel illustrated comprises inner and outer sheets 14 and 15 of transparent material, such as plain clear glass. Between these sheets of transparent material, there is disposed an opaque sheet 16, such as black paper, sheet metal or the like having an opening 17 therein of any suitable shape, such as an arrow or hand pointing with the index finger or the like,

' of translucent material, such as white paper.

A sheet 20 of foraminous material, such as open mesh wire cloth, may be disposed between thefront or outer transparent sheet 15 and the front translucent sheet 19. All these sheets mayif desired be connected together by a binder or frame 21, so that they may be handled as a unit.

The purpose of the transparentsheets 1a and 15 is purely to support and protect the other members of the front slide 13. The apertured opaque plate 16 is obviously the 7 signal member per se. The front outcr translucent sheet 19 serves to conceal the signal plate 16 and to present at all times when the signal is not in operation a blank surface. When the signal is operated, light shines through the plateeaperture 17 and illuminates that portion of the translucent sheet over the aperture, so that this portion of the translucent sheet has the appearance of being incandescent and distinguishes conspicuously from the surrounding portion of the transparent sheet. The inner translucent sheet 18 is, it has been found by experiment, desirable for the purpose of intensifying the effect. "When only a single translucent sheet is used, the signal effect is orange colored, but when the inner translucent sheet is used spaced from the outer by the apertured plate, the effect produced is of an intense white or incandescent signal, which is startlingly conspicuous and which has much greater visibility than the signal, as given through a single thickness of translucent material. It has been found that. under certain light conditions or perhaps due to the thinness of the front translucent sheet or to a tendency therein to semitransparency, a vague outline of the aperture 17 may be observed even when the signal is not in use. To avoid any possibility W5 of this being mistaken for a signal, a screen or filter in the form of the wire mesh sheet 20 is placed in front of the translucent sheet. This screen breaks up the light reflected from the translucent sheet when the signal 1 is inoperative, so that any slight difierences in the reflecting power of the sheet due to the aperture 17 are completely lost sight of. This screen further has the efl'ect of imparting a dull or grayish appearance to the signal, so that the effect produced when the signal is operated is very greatly intensified. The question of operation at night needs no explanation, as it is obvious from the foregoing description. At night, the entire signal device is invisible or substantially invisible and, when operated, the effeet is that of a white device on a black ground, as will be readily understood. In daylight, however, when the whole signal 18 visible. it is more difficult to comprehend the operation. It must be understood that the signal is visible in daylight merely because of the light transmitted from it to the eye of the beholder. In the case of the white translucent material at the front, the reflection is say 80% of the light received. This reflected light comes back to the observer from all parts of the sheet. When the lamp 12 is in operation, the light given off from it shines through the translucent material to the eye of the beholder. Therefore, more light is transmittted from that part of the sheet opposite the aperture than from the remaining part, with the result that the sheet over the aperture appears bright or incandescent, whereas the remainder appears dull. lihis eti'ect is intensified by the wire screen. When light is shining through the translucent sheet, the source is larger than the individual wires of the screen, with the result that at a short distance the wires of the screen are lost sight of with no apparent diminution in the illumination, whereas in the surrounding part of the screen, they materially reduce the amount of reflected light. The inner translucent sheet is illuminated by light from the lamp and the light is uniformly distributed through this sheet, which becomes in effect a source of light of uniform intensity in the whole area of the opening. If the inner translucent sheet is omitted, the effect is not as good. It will also be observed. that the inner translucent sheet serves as a light filter, and therefore that any color effects desired may be produced by the use of appropriate material in this in ner sheet. In order to produce the desired effect, the inner and outer translucent sheets must be in spaced relation but the spacing is not necessarily very great.

The signal device itself has been illustrated in a most elementary form, and it will be understood that the different signals may be in separate casings 11 or may be eon'lbined in a single casing in any manner desired. it will also be understood that, while the device has been illustrated as embodying an electric lamp. this is not essential since if constant sources of light, such as acetylene flames, are used, any of the cus tomary devices may be resorted to to inter rupt the passage of the light as desired. Ubviously, a number of-modifications may be made in the exact manner of producing the desired result, for example, by the combination of the translucent and transparent ngelmbers or in any other manner found suita e.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is;

1. In a device of the class described, the combination with a source of light, of a sheet of (paper arranged to be illuminated thereby an to become a secondary source of light, a second sheet of paper arranged to give passage to light from said secondary source, said latter sheet serving also to reflect external light and signal means interposed between said sheets to define the shape or beams of light passing from the secondary source of illumination to the reflecting sheet.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination with a source of light of asheet of paper arranged to be illuminated thereby and to become a second source of light, a second sheet of paper arranged to give passage to light from said secondary source said latter sheet serving to reflect external light, and an opaque plate disposed between the secondary source of light and the reflecting sheet, said plate being provided with a symbol forming aperture.

3. In combination with a device according to claim 1, foraminous means arranged to reduce the amount of light reflected from said reflecting sheet and to split up the rays thereof in a manner to roduce uniform re" flection from all parts tiiereof.

4. In combination with a device according to claim 1, foraminous means arranged to reduce reflection of light from said reflecting sheet, said reducingmeans offering substantially no obstruction to the passage of light through the reflecting means, whereby the reflection reducing means becomes sub stantially invisible over portions of the re fleeting means through which light is passmg.

5. A device of the clam described, comprising a pair of translucent sheets disposed in spaced relation, an opaque a ertured plate disposed between said trans ucent sheets, the aperture in said plate being in the form of a symbol, and a foraminous wire sheet on the opposite side of one of said trains i ii il pair of translucent sheets, an oqaque apertnred sheet dis osed between the translucent sheets and hole ing the same in spaced rela tion, the aperture in said opaque sheet being in the form of a Symbol, a sheet of open mesh wire cloth 0n the opposite side of one of said translucent sheets and on that side of the device designed to be exposed to view, and a frame holding allot said elements together.

8. In combination with a device according to claim 7, inner and outer sheets of transparent material forming a protective cover= ing for the elements 01 the devlce.

9. in a device of the class described, a casing, a source of light therein, a front for said casing comprising inner and outer sheets 0% translucent material, an opaque plate positioned between said translucent sheets, said plate being provided with a symbol forming aperture and a sheet of open wire mesh cloth in front of the outer translucent sheet.

10. In combination with a device according to claim 9, a frame holding the translucent sheets, apertured plate and wire cloth together for removal as a unit from the casing.

11. A device of the class described, comprising a pair of sheets of white paper, an apertured opaque plate disposed between said sheets, the aperture in said plate being in the form of a symbol, a sheet of openmesh wire cloth over one of said paper sheets, front and back transparent sheets, and a frame holding all said elements rigidly together.

In witness whereof, We have hereunto set our hands.

LESLIE G. BELL. MORRIS GRIMM. 

